Just A Stupid Cold
by XX-The Barmy Otaku-XX
Summary: Just a few stories centering around Kaneki, Touka, and Touka's stupid cold. Fluffity fluff fluff. *First Tokyo Ghoul Fanfic*
1. Chapter 1

"Touka-Chan," The navy haired boy called out her name with a soft smile on his face, "Are you feeling better?" He asked her, straightening his white collar and approaching the yawning girl who was slowly walking down the stairs. The navy blue haired girl sighed softly to herself, and quickly fastened her red tie, and walked up to her colleague.

She noticed the bright smile on his face, and it calmed her to see him like this again, even though he had gone through so much in the previous days. So, she normally did what she normally would do. Clicked her tongue in annoyance and brushed passed him.

"Don't slack off because of me." She said with a slight jab, shrugging him off. "I already have _enough_ work as it is." She immediately grabbed a pen and a notepad, and stood behind the counter. She sniffled and scrunched up her nose, sighing after. The navy haired boy joined her quietly, pouring some black coffee into two white mugs.

"I decided not to open up yet; so I cleaned up a little. I-I hope you aren't mad." He whispered pushing a mug towards the sniffling girl. Touka shifted her gaze away from the notepad and to the coffee mug. In the middle was a small blue icon of a simple rabbit. She raised an eyebrow questionably at it.

_Is this supposed to be for me?_

"No, I'm not mad." She grabbed the handle of the coffee mug and lifted it up to her mouth. Then, she smelled it, and drank it cautiously. Kaneki stared at her with his curious gray eyes as she drank, with an expectant smile on his face. "And _stop_ staring, it's weird." She muttered, coldly.

"I'm glad you like it. That means I'm getting better at making it, huh." Kaneki eagerly said, downing his cup peacefully. Touka was about to comment, but halted and coughed into the crook of her arm.

"Touka-Chan?" Kaneki immediately dropped his cup onto the counter, and placed his hands on her shoulders worriedly.

"I'm _fine_!" She growled out, shoving the poor boy away weakly. She sniffled, and reached across the counter for a napkin. "Hurry up and open up." She ordered, dabbing at the watery corners of her eyes with the white napkin.

Kaneki heaved a sigh, and shook his head.

Touka furrowed her eyebrows at him, and balled up the napkin. "_Well_?" She drawled impatiently. Kaneki gave her a firm look and shook his head, crossing his arms over his chest.

"Go back up and get some rest."

"I'm _fine_. Open up already."

"Since when was coughing _consistently_ considered being _fine_?"

"_Consistently_? I coughed _once_, big deal shithead." She mumbled, throwing the balled up napkin into the trashcan. She casually walked over to the coffee shelf, and grabbed a bag of espresso coffee beans. She returned to the back of the counter and poured the beans into a small bowl.

"Besides the Manager left _me_ in charge and what I say goes." She said, wagging her index finger dangerously close at him. Kaneki pressed his lips firmly together, and mentally slammed his head against the wall.

Her stubbornness could well be the end of her….

"Fine, _alright_." He wiped his hands down with a white towel and walked to the door, and flipped the "We're Open!" sign. He turned back towards her, only to see that she had already begun to wash the cups that they had used.

Kaneki stared at the back of the high school girl and back at the sign on the door. He wondered if the Manager would understand if he did it just once. Besides, having Anteiku closed for one day shouldn't hurt the business.

He caressed his temples. _Here goes nothing._

Touka closed the faucets, and dried her hands with the white towel that she had grabbed earlier. Man, what was wrong with her today? And _yesterday_! And the day _before_! Since when did Touka Kirishima ever stay sick for so long? She brushed her blue hair behind her ear and turned away from the sink. Hopefully, the little shithead would have finished the rest-

Two warm hands clasped down upon her wrists, holding her hands to her sides, and restrained her movement. She found herself staring into a pair of determined gray eyes, and she blinked twice in surprise but glared sharply at him.

"Shithead, let _go_."

"You really should go back to bed."

"Let go, _now_."

"I _won't_. Not until you go get some _rest_." He said, with a ting of demand in his voice. His face then relaxed and his grip on her wrists loosened a bit, but he didn't let go. "You're skin is paler than usual, you have a _tomato_ for a nose, and a _terrible_ cough." He observed with concern. Kaneki looked straight into Touka's purple eyes

"It's not so bad…having others care about you, you know." He said smoothly. Touka grunted as a speck of a blush appeared on her pale cheeks.

"Alright, fine." She swiftly stomped on his foot, causing him to yelp in pain and fully release her wrists. Kaneki crouched down to caress his foot and was about to call out to her, when he saw her climbing up the stairs. Touka glanced down at him briefly and glared at him venomously. "Touch me again, and I'll kill you." And then she turned down the hall.

Kaneki was satisfied to hear her door slam, and smiled.

Touka slumped against the door, and sat on the floor, with her head between her knees and her fingers tangled within her dark hair. She could still smell the coffee on him from when he held her close and she could still feel the warmth from his hands on her wrists.

The high school girl raised her head, and tried her best to cover the blush with hands.

"Stupid Kaneki, it's just a stupid cold…"


	2. Chapter 2

**TBO: Beware of the colds everyone. Beware...**

* * *

><p>"Yoriko."<p>

…

"Yoriko?"

…

A bundle of messy blue hair emerges from the tangle of sheets, and the girl groans loudly when her friend is not in sight. She rolls over to the desk beside her bed, and lazily snatches two pieces of Kleenex from the box. She rolls back over until she is on her belly, and throws the covers over her head.

She had a pretty darn good explanation for this, Okay?

It was all because of a damn stupid cold. A stupid cold that was pretty stupid because Touka Kirishima had caught it. To be honest, she would rather be working than lazing around in bed.

_I must've missed like two full days of work. The Manager's so nice…and Kaneki..._

The blue haired girl rolls over onto her back and groans loudly, dark eyes staring at the gray ceiling. No no no no no. She was not going to just lay there and ponder and day dream all day about that dorky little shit. She was going to get some rest and go to work during her next shift-no matter what!

_Clang!_

_Clang!_

Touka winced when then at the sounds of cups being slammed onto the counter and pots being put on the stove. She slowly pulled herself upright and dragged her body to the door…

_Geez, can I leave Yoriko alone in the Kitchen by herself?_

-only to be surprised to find a thermometer intruding her mouth.

"GAH!"

Her dark purple eyes meet the tranquil olive ones and she automatically calmed down. But the small twinge of annoyance was still evident in them. She waited until the damned thing was removed, before she can say as blunty.

"What the _hell_, Yoriko?"

Yoriko cups her cheek in worry as she looks down at the thermometer, ignoring Touka's anger. "Oh my. Oh, my poor child." She says to no one in particular. But, Touka notes it and takes a peek at the temperature device, quirking her eyebrow skeptically.

"What does the stupid thing say?"

Yoriko shakes her head and furrows her eyebrows in worry.

"It says that your temperature is 100.7 degrees, Love."

Touka batted an eyelash at her best friend, and sunk deeper beneath the covers with a loud pained groan. Her best friend gently caressed her messy blue hair and pushed away the strands that buried her left purple eye.

"Ugh, is that good Yoriko?" She asked, lifting the cup of hot chocolate to her lips. She grimaced, but held down the disgusting taste.

Touka wasn't really good with dealing with colds. What kind of ghoul got sick from a simple cold? Apparently colds were the second dangerous thing to her, besides the fucking pestering Doves. When Touka heard nothing but shuffling, she rolled over onto the side of her torso, and raised an eyebrow at her orange haired friend whose head was turned towards the door.

"Yoriko?"

"I'm gonna go see who's at the door, OK?" Touka sighed in irritation and covered her head completely with her violet covers.

_Visitors? What visitors? _

Yoriko gently set the pot of chicken noodle soup by the head of the bed, and walked out. Touka threw the covers off of her head abruptly, hands clasped against her red nose.

_God, what is that? _Her eyes searched the room, and she spotted the little pot of terror right next to her. She grimaced, and dug for the safety of the blankets once more, praying that her bubbly friend didn't decide to make the steaming pot and feed it to her.

Yoriko would be the end of Touka Kirishima.

"Touka-Chan, I'm back!" Yoriko's chirpy voice rang from in the hall. Touka sniffled, and reluctantly removed the light covers from her head.

"Great, did you tell them to _fuck_ off?"

The sick ghoul could was thankful that her hearing was intact, because she could hear a second set of footsteps-a pair of nervous ones clattering down the wooden tiles of her floor. Who would come to visit her at all? Hinami had taken a trip to the grocery store to buy some medicine (Yoriko was surprised to find out that Touka had no medicine in her house and refused to not buy any).

Yoriko's head popped into the doorway and she had the knowing smile with her eyes closed on her face. Touka knew that expression. She knew that expression _very_ well. Yoriko had done something-or was plotting something that she knew Touka would be pissed or uncomfortable with.

"Guess who came to visit?" She chirped. A second head popped into the doorway, and Touka instantly recognized the idiotic face of Kaneki Ken. Yoriko clapped her hands together and cocked her head to the side cutely. "Kaneki-San came!" She turned to the fidgeting boy with a concerned face. "You must have been so worried. Knowing how Touka-Chan is and all."

Kaneki rubbed the back of his head sheepishly and smiled kindly.

"H-How is Touka-Chan doing?"

"Well, for starters she has a temperature of 100.7 degrees."

Kaneki rubbed his chin and chuckled slightly. "I guess she's getting better, right?" Then his face faltered, and he glanced at the brooding girl worriedly. "Has she been drinking well? You know, like soup and water?"

_I guess she's getting better, right? Has she been drinking well? Gosh, he's sounds like such a _fucking_ mom. _Touka mimicked her co-worker, glaring at him with beady eyes. Suddenly, her nose started to itch and her eyes had begun to water.

"ACHOO!"

They yell was loud and so unexpected that Yoriko jumped back and Kaneki sweat dropped in shock and nervousness.

Touka sniffled and narrowed her eyes at them. "I feel like I'm _fucking_ dying here." She muttered, reaching over her bed to snatch a tissue from the box. Yoriko opened another box and placed it on her desk.

"You look like it too…" She said sympathetically. Touka glared at her, but took the opportunity to observe the scrawny college student that stood beside Yoriko.

His hair was neatly combed down and his gray eyes looked at her warmly. He wore his usual dorky outfit, and–

-wait, wasn't he supposed at work?

"Uh, hey." She nodded in acknowledgement, and he took the opportunity to enter her room, behind Yoriko.

Kaneki sheepishly scratched the back of his head. "I was pretty worried when I didn't see you at work again this afternoon. Nishio-Senpai took over our shifts so I could see you. Sorry to interrupt…" He confessed, looking at her. Touka sniffled, and sat up against her bed frame, honestly surprised.

_He let that sex obsessed freak take over his shift to see me? _She sighed and shook her head. _I don't get this guy._

Touka noticed the plastic bag that he held in his hand.

"What's in the bag?" She asked him, shifting over when Yoriko lifted the pot of soup over her head. Kaneki quickly moved out of the way when Yoriko danced past him, with a happy smile on her face. She glanced quickly at the two.

"I'm gonna go warm this up for you, OK?"

Touka and Kaneki forced a smile at the bubbly human girl. "Alright, thanks." And once the two listened to her fading footsteps, they both paled and resisted the urge to not imagine how horrendous the soup would taste.

"Touka-Chan, please don't tell me that you're planning to-."

"_Eat_ it? Of course I am!" She whispered, glaring at the older teen.

Kaneki sighed helplessly and gently placed the bag on the foot of her bed. "How do you expect to feel better when you keep eating her cooking? It's practically _poison_ to you!" Touka furrowed her eyebrows at him and pulled the plastic bag closer to her face.

Touka then felt a presence closing in on her and lifted up her purple eyes to meet Kaneki's gray ones that were staring at her with a look of disbelief. "W-Well, she made it for me!" She glared into them, trying to fight off a surfacing blush. "_What_?" She asked harshly, reaching for the mug at her bedside.

"Don't tell me you've been eating her cooking ever since you got sick." He said steadily, with a calculative look in his gray eyes. Touka slowly pulled her arm back to her side and returned her attention to the bag sitting in her lap.

"N-No and," Her right hand shuffled around within the bag and she pulled out a small can, "_coffee_?" She asked, a small snort escaping from her. Kaneki snatched the mug from her bedside and frowned disapprovingly at her.

"It's better than having hot chocolate though, right?"

Touka flushed bashfully and handed the coffee back to him. Kaneki gently took it from her hand, and walked to the doorway. "I'll go brew this up in the kitchen." Touka shifted her gaze away from the door, and leaned her chin against her knuckles.

She could still smell the lingering coffee. It smelled familiar to his overwhelming scent that took her in the other day. The dark blue haired girl sniffled and slapped her cheeks.

_Just what the hell, Kirishima!_

Her face was heating up with every thought she had about him. She slowly gave up when she realized that slapping her cheeks wasn't doing her face any justice.

_Stupid cold's making me feel weird…_

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><p><strong>TBO: Kaneki inadress ajeecmkdn<strong>

**TBO: Faith, you ship Allena? That is too cute :V hbendmbf**

**TBO: I'm so weird! But thanks for the reviews, and I hope you enjoyed! **


	3. Chapter 3

**Thanks For the Reviews! Here's chapter 3!**

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><p>"Ow! Hot! Hot!"<p>

She snatched the spoon away from him and slapped him over the head in anger. "Can't you do _anything_ right, Shithead Kaneki!" Touka barked, wiping down the stain on her shirt. Kaneki rubbed the back of his sheepishly and bowed his head apologetically.

"I'm so sorry, I didn't mean to do it-The smell was overwhelming!" He tried to explain, reaching for a napkin. Touka glared at him when he tried to help with the stain, and snatched the napkin out of his hand, doing it herself.

She hesitantly sniffed her shirt, and scrunched her nose up at the disgusting smell. "Damn it." She muttered as she roughly dragged the napkin across her simple pajama top. Kaneki awkwardly turned away from her, and folded his hands into his lap, and took the opportunity to look around the younger teen's room.

Pale gray walls surrounded them at every corner. The bed was small, a fit for one, with a mix of yellow and purple blankets and pillows. Above the bed were hellebore flowers that were painted in white and black on the gray walls. Beside the bed was a small desk that had a few textbooks that were organized on the left side with the yellow lamp on the left.

Quite simple…

"The stain won't come off," She said defeated, throwing the napkin to the side.

"I'm sorry." Kaneki apologized softly, feeling terrible.

Touka waved him off, and stared down at the meat clumps in the chicken noodle soup. "Maybe the whole soup thing wasn't really a good idea…" She mused to no one in particular. Kaneki heard her of course and agreed silently with her.

"Alright shithead," Touka pointed to her door. "Go wait outside. The shirt's got to go." Kaneki flushed in embarrassment, and awkwardly stood up from the chair at the desk and picked up the pot of soup.

"I'll just go ahead and uh get rid of _this_."

She grunted in response with her back turned to hum. Kaneki walked out the room gently closing the door behind him.

Touka grabbed the hem of her shirt, and removed it.

"_Share the soup with him, alright? I'll see you tomorrow!"_

_Touka furrowed her eyebrows and stared blankly at her friend in disbelief. Share the soup? Share the soup with him? Oh no no no no _NO_! Touka snatched the hem of her orange haired friend before she could even leave the room._

"_I want you to take care of me-_not_ him!" Touka whispered, irate. Yoriko smiled sheepishly and batted the now flustered girl's hands away, giggling softly. Touka huffed tiredly, and slumped against the bed frame shaking her head. "Don't do this to me, Yoriko. Please, not when I'm like this." Touka tried reasoning with her in an uncharacteristically soft voice._

"_Touka-Chan," Yoriko started gently, "Come on, it's a great chance." She took the girls pale hand into her two warm ones. "You know what? I'm gonna tell him to feed you."_

"_-Oh _come_ on!"_

"_I do that all the time to you." Yoriko smiled at her. "You like him right? What's the problem if he does it?" She asked curiously. _

_Touka pressed her lips into a thin line and she used her other hand to wipe away a trail of sweat at her brow line."You just don't get it…" He was the problem itself! "And I don't like him! He's just my annoying Co-Worker!"_

_Yoriko heaved a sigh, and dug into her school sweater pocket._

"_Call me if anything, Love." She said, releasing Touka's hand and kissing her gently on the forehead. "And text me once he leaves!" She said with a squeal as she quickly ran out of the room._

Touka fumbled around with her drawer of clothes and pulled out a black shirt with a quote written in cursive writing that said, "Cupcake Cult." She threw it over her head and yawned, ruffling her hair up a bit.

_I guess I'll just tell him to leave. I feel so tired…_

As she sat down in bed again, she couldn't help but glance at the door. On the other side, the poor fool must have been fidgeting around without much to do. She sniffled and wrapped herself up in a cocoon with her blankets, and called out, "Shithead come in!"

Kaneki twisted the doorknob, and walked in with a mug of coffee in his hand. Touka licked her bottom lip and gently took the mug from his hands. "Coffee?" She glanced at the cup that sat on her bedside. "_Again_?" She questioned, with an annoyed frown on her lips.

Kaneki sat at the foot of her bed, and threw his head back with a smile. "You seemed to enjoy the one I made earlier-So, I thought you could use another one. Hope you don't, um, _mind_, by the way." He added nervously.

"…Cupcake Cult?"

Touka looked down at her shirt and then flared her nose at him. "What is there a problem? It's cute!"

Kaneki laughed nervously. "No, there's no problem at all." He responded in a little voice.

Touka accepted the mug and gently traced the carvings of the rabbit that was engraved on the side. "Hey! You're lucky that I'm sick. I'd kick your ass for even being here, ya know." She said grumpily.

"I know. I know." Kaneki sighed softly, and he glanced at her. "Need any help with the coffee?" He asked, folding his hands in his lap. Touka rolled her eyes, and took a sip, glaring straight at him. Kaneki laughed nervously.

"It was a stupid suggestion, wasn't it?"

Touka sniffled, and set the cup back in its holder. She could see how tired he was-how uncomfortable he felt with her wary glance. So why was he here? Why was he pushing himself past his comfort zone to even care about her?

"Hey, stupid Kaneki." She said softly. "Just stop it." She said, as she shuffled around with the covers. Kaneki raised his eyebrows at her, taken by surprise. Touka raised her glance a second after just to see that he was still sitting there.

She huffed and combed her hair back, and leaned against the bed frame. "What's wrong with you...acting like you care all of a sudden." She muttered under her breath. Kaneki smiled sadly and played around with his fingers.

"That's because I do care, Touka." He confessed straight forward. Touka scoffed and refused to meet his glance.

"I don't want you to care about me." She said sharply.

"Why can't I?" He asked softly.

Touka thought about everything that the older boy was going through: His date with Rize, his surgery, becoming a ghoul, almost being killed and eaten by the Gourmet, twice. He was going through so much right now and all he could think about was taking care of her?

Bullshit. She couldn't think about anyone who would act so selfless.

Well actually…just one. Just one foolishly selfless man entered her mind.

She scrunched her face up and narrowed her eyes at him. "It's stupid. I can take care of myself." She answered, smartly. Kaneki sighed tiredly.

"It's getting pretty late, maybe I should go." Kaneki said, scratching the back of his head. Touka huffed and held her blankets close.

"Good, I didn't even want you here." She seethed through her teeth. Kaneki smiled and pushed himself off of her bed with less effort. Kaneki stood up, and surprised Touka by gently taking the covers from her grasp.

He gently pushed her down, until she rested on the bed, and he tucked her in carefully. He moved the cup of coffee so that it was closer to her, and he smiled. "It's not so bad having others care about you, Touka-Chan." He told her.

The high school girl huffed and ducked her head under the covers. "You told me that already, you stupid fool." She mumbled.

Kaneki patted her head gingerly. "Well, I just thought that you might have needed to hear it again." He said, standing up straight. Touka looked away, her eyes half lidded. He was still there, smiling stupidly. And his hand was still resting on top of her head. Grumbling under her breath, she slapped his hand away.

Kaneki was still smiling down at her. Touka pressed her lips thinly together.

"Just leave, Shit head."

She heard the door close, and sighed in relief, squirming a bit out of the covers. Enough for her face to escape. Her cheeks were slightly pink, and she bit down on her bottom lip, thinking aimlessly.

Her lilac eyes then widened at the sound of approaching footsteps, and Touka rushed back under the covers. What the hell did he want now?

Her door creaked open slightly, and a small silhouette appeared. Touka instantly recognized the brunette hair and the hazel eyes of the young girl. "Hinami!" She shouted, but then regretted doing so because she broke out in a coughing fit.

"Sorry, I was lost." She said, setting the plastic bag on the desk. "I just passed by Onii-Chan, he said he came to see you." She said, with a smile. Then, she saw Touka's burning face and smiled a knowing smile. "Did something happen…?" She asked, raising an eyebrow. Touka slapped her palm against her head.

"Not now, Hinami. Please."

Hinami laughed behind the back of her hand, and flicked off the lights with the other. "I'll leave you alone for today, Onee-Chan. But, you can't lie to yourself forever!" She teased, softy closing the door. Touka rolled her eyes and scoffed for like what had seemed to be the thousandth time that day and pulled out her phone.

"Well goodnight to you too, Hinami." She muttered, sitting up. "Where the hell does she get her instinct from anyway?" She smiled.

_Hinami does seem happier. I'm glad._

She turned it on and started scrolling down her contact list.

Yoriko.

She turned off her phone and shook her head. Nothing had happened that was remarkable enough to report back to her…

…well maybe that he was too selfless for his own damn good.

Touka tucked her phone under her pillow and turned on her side, her eyelids drooping slightly. And he was an idiot… rather nice idiot who cared about her and smelled like coffee. And the way he patted her head gingerly reminded her so much of her dad…not that she liked it or anything.

"Damn you," She whispered, before sleep came and took her away.

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><p><strong>Hope you enjoyed it! R&amp;R!<strong>


	4. Chapter 4

**TBO: THANKS FOR THE REVIEWS! ENJOY!**

* * *

><p>How many days had it been since she caught this stupid cold?<p>

Touka wobbly plopped herself onto the leather couch in her living room, hazily. Small beads of sweat began to form on her forehead due to the immense heat that was radiating off of her body. She had placed a bowl of cold water and a small towel beside her in case- but she didn't have the strength to nurse herself today.

Slowly slumping against the cushion, she shut her puffy pink eyes and groaned. "So…tired…I think I'll…just lay here…stupid…cold…"She voiced softly between each heavy breath. This helpless state was so embarrassing- who knew that it could be so hard? Her whole motto consisted of her taking care of herself and others.

Touka reminisced about the good old days when she was still with her family. Whenever she caught a cold ( She caught them quite often ) her mother would give her a special relaxing bath that would make her cold go away and would serve Touka's favorite dish for dinner.

She loved her mother.

And once she passed away, her dad had a different way of doing things. Touka couldn't help but let out a painful chuckle at the memory. Her Pop would wrap her up into a cocoon made out of multiple warm blankets and give her warm coffee whenever she caught a cold. He'd make sure that she walked around with them too-sort of like a shield to protect her from danger. It came pretty in handy when she tripped too. Then he would apologize sheepishly and say that he wasn't as good as their mother at these things.

She loved her father.

Ayato's coffee seemed to be the thing that healed her the most. She was surprised that he knew how to at least make a decent cup, and she was always a bit envious at how he was better at handling ingredients than she was. Whenever she was sick in bed, he'd hunt by himself at night for the both of them, and would always leave a steaming cup behind for her to enjoy.

She loved her little dimwit of a brother Ayato.

And Touka couldn't help but laugh dryly at the thought of her being alone. It wasn't fair, always being taken from. She missed her mother, Pops, and her brother. _I feel so delirious right now. _She wiped away the beads of cold sweat with her wrist and opened her eyes with a squint.

"I'm so…tired…"

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><p><strong>Anteiku<strong>

"Good work today everyone." Kaneki beamed to his fellow co-workers, as he closed the doors of Anteiku behind him. Nishiki was grumpily cleaning the mugs and glasses behind the counter. Hinami was small talking with Irimi as the older woman wiped down the tables. The Manager stood by the stairs, with his hands behind his back and with a content smile on his face.

Kaneki's face then deflated when he noticed that someone was missing. He shook his head and walked up to the counter and placed his bag on the ground. He smiled brightly at the Manager, who had sauntered over to him.

"Kaneki-Kun, how was school today?"

"It was ah, very interesting. It went well."

"And are you _sleeping_ well?"

"Mm…yes," Kaneki rubbed his chin uncomfortably, and averted his glance. "Is Touka-Chan not working today either?" He asked, shoving his hands into his pockets, and cocking his head to the side. The Manager shook his head and Nishiki closed the cup cabinet, not so quietly.

The orange haired teen slapped Kaneki's shoulder to get him to move over so he could wipe down the counter. "Who knows? It's been quiet up there _all_ day." Nishiki mused. "We usually hear _all_ _kinds_ of noises; the damn klutz trips over everything." The older teen shrugged uncaring. "But today: nothing." The older teen said observantly. Then, we he saw Kaneki's tight face, he snickered mockingly.

"Worried about your girlfriend, Eyepatch?"

"S-She's not my-" Kaneki sighed and shot a worried glance at the stair case. "I just thought that her cold would be gone by now. Does she normally get sick like this?" He asked the Manager, getting worried. Even if she did normally get sick like this; shouldn't Ghouls get better faster than the average human?

Kaneki furrowed his eyebrows. _Right?_

The Manager placed a warm cup of black coffee in front of the navy haired boy and smiled gently. "Here, have a cup." He cleaned his hands with a white napkin and sat by the counter, beside Kaneki. Kaneki accepted the drink, and wrapped his fingers around it, allowing for the warm sensation to sink in before he took his first sip.

_It's delicious as always._

"As you might have already known, Touka is an orphaned child." The Manager told him blankly. Kaneki gulped and nodded with a grim look. "Her independence was mostly caused by her inability to trust others and even when she would catch a cold she would just coop herself upstairs until it was gone. This behavior is no surprise; but there was someone who would take care of her." The Manager reminisced, drinking his own coffee.

"Ayato…" A low voice suddenly spoke softly. Kaneki glanced over his shoulder and was surprised to see that Yomo had walked into the coffee shop in his casual clothes. The white haired man pulled off the hat on his head, and brushed off the snow that had latched itself onto it. Kaneki, and the other workers furrowed their eyebrows in confusion as to whom they were speaking of.

The Manager nodded at Yomo in acknowledgement and sighed. "Yes, Touka's younger brother Ayato. The boy used to always take care of his sister despite being the delinquent that he was. Funny thing; he despised out shop with such strong dislike and hated our morals. But, he would still stay with his sister. He was the only thing that she held dear, and when he left," The Manager sighed again.

Kaneki pressed his lips thinly together. _I see. _He laughed flatly and looked away from the Manager. "It makes sense; she told me a few days ago that she didn't want me to care and that she thought that it was stupid." He mumbled, slowly getting off of his chair. "To think she was going through all that…"

Hinami knitted her eyebrows in worry and Irimi patted her shoulder. "Onee-Chan…"

Nishiki scratched the back of his head, tiredly. "Well, I didn't expect for that Bi-Touka to be siblings with Ayato from Aogori. Man, that's fucked up." He muttered, grabbing the broom from the small closet near the stairs. Irimi and Hinami shot glares at the orange haired man, and he apologized nervously.

Yomo cleared his throat and moved over to where Kaneki was.

"You should go to her and check up on her, Ken." He said firmly, placed a hand on the college's student's shoulder. Kaneki looked up at the older man, taken back and confused. He lifted his finger and pointed at himself unsurely.

"But why me?"

"Why not?"

Kaneki's face relaxed and he dumbfounded by Yomo's soft spoken words. It was pretty clear if not obvious that the high school girl despised his half breed guts, at his last visit. She wouldn't even want to see him if he went. To be honest, no matter how hard he tried to get her to warm up to him, it would either end up in him making a full of himself or Touka disliking him even more.

Kaneki grabbed his bag, and smiled platonically. "Something tells me that…I'm not really Touka's favorite person as of now. Wouldn't it be better if you went to her?" Kaneki pushed on. "You both seem really close-like siblings almost!" He stopped when Yomo shook his head slowly.

"I have no right to. But what matters most for you is that you care about her Ken." Yomo patted him on the back and placed his hat back on his head, flattening his white hair. "Don't avoid her." He finished with a ghost of a smile, and then turned around to leave the shop.

"Well damn. I swear I've never heard him speak for so long…" Nishiki deadpanned, putting away the cleaning utensils. Irimi and Hinami half glared at him for his unnecessary comment, and Nishiki held his hands up in defense chuckling sheepishly.

Kaneki took a few steps towards the door and sighed. "Alright, here I go." He said with a small huff. One minute later and he was still planted in the same spot. Kaneki rubbed his chin and his face faltered a bit. He rushed to back to the counter, sat in a chair, and dipped his head into his hands. "I-I don't think that I can do this! What if she doesn't want to see me?" He admitted, flushing in embarrassment. Seriously, he wondered where all that confidence that he had easily mustered up whenever he was with Touka went.

Hinami smiled warmly and looked up at him. "Trust me, she will." She said with an innocent look on her face. "Onee-Chan is happier when you're around." Kaneki removed his flushed face from his hands and raised an eyebrow at Hinami's unexpected reassurance.

"Are you sure?"

Irimi laughed and propped her elbows onto the small table that she had cleaned.

"Hinami is right, Kaneki. Why are you so self conscious?" Irimi teased, petting Hinami's brunette hair. Kaneki blushed and stood up from his seat. Yoshimura fished something out of the pocket of his apron and turned to the aimlessly staring boy.

"Kaneki, here." Yoshimura grabbed his bare hands, and placed a small brown package in his palms gently. Kaneki raised an eyebrow at the package; questioning why it was given to him. The old man smiled wryly and his wrinkles pooled around his cheeks. "Take it with you and give it to Touka, alright?"

_Package. Meat. Ghoul. Touka. _Kaneki furiously nodded and did a quick spin towards the door. "Right, Touka." He directed himself, in a tranquil tone. His leg shook as he took the first step, and he glanced back over his shoulder uneasily.

The workers of Anteiku all smiled confidently at him.

"Ok…I-I'm going now." He declared.

Nishiki placed his hands on his hips, and snorted. "Oh, stop being such a fucking sissy! I'm tired of your complaining about Touka not being here and I'm tired of taking over shitty Touka's shifts; just get together already…" He unbuttoned his sleeve, and rolled it down to his elbow. The older college students smirked evilly and clenched his hand into a fist, displaying the bulging veins in his arm as well. "Even think about taking one step backwards, I'll pummel you." He said dangerously low.

"W-We aren't-." Kaneki stopped midsentence and immediately whirled around and marched towards the door. _We aren't getting together! _He thought flustered, as he walked into the cold air.

* * *

><p><strong>TBO: Touka's cold's just getting better each day lol. Kaneki's just shyyyyyy<strong>

**TBO: Thanks for reading!**


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